Lifecall/LifeAlert Emergency Medical Response System

Advertising today is alarmingly prevalent in today’s society.  People are being marketed to sometimes without even knowing it.  Product placement is used in popular televisions shows and movies almost hourly.  Companies are constantly discovering new and shocking methods of advertising.  It’s surprising that by now there is any space left to look with out seeing some form of a logo or a motto.

Advertisers often use methods that can be downright dirty in their persuasive techniques.  They can often convince the general population that they can’t get along well unless they buy a product.  A particularly distressing advertisement I found was the classic LifeCall (now LifeAlert) commercial that originally aired in the early 90’s.

This commercial (despite the humor that it often causes in college students’ apartments) can really tug at your heart strings.  LifeAlert is a device that is intended for senior citizens to wear around their next.  With the touch of a button, they can alert an ambulance, their next door neighbor, doctor and family of an emergency.  This specific commercial shows various senior citizens in situations where use of the LifeAlert system is essential.  There is no background music, but they show old person after old person have heart attacks and fall without being able to stand up on their own.

This commercial evokes strong emotions out of their younger and older viewers.  Younger viewers feel guilty about older relatives, and older relatives are scared into wanting to purchase one.  If a LifeAlert necklace saves countless lives, how could you not afford one for your loved ones?

The only people that are represented in the commercial are people who are so old that they can’t appear to take care of themselves.  The slogan that LifeAlert has come to associate itself with is “Help!  I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!”  They also market the fact that if you own one, you will never be alone.  Testimonies state that the device gives the user the confidence to live on their own.

The advertisement quickly shows situation after situation where senior citizens are in distress.  In real life, an elderly person may only use this device every once in a while.  This ad almost guilt-trips family members into purchasing the system for older relatives that are living alone.  I feel that this is a disturbing method of selling a product.